Vol. 412 No. 5
5 Mr. Noonan (Limerick East) asked the Minister for Finance if, in his capacity as 45 per cent shareholder in Greencore, he will outline his views on the continuance in office of the present chairman of Greencore plc; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
13 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Finance if he has yet received the reports of (a) the Central Bank and (b) the Revenue Commissioners into aspects of the Greencore/Irish Sugar affair which the Government announced on 10 September, 1991; if he will outline the main findings of the reports; if it is intended to publish the reports; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
20 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Finance if there has been a meeting with the board of Greencore to express dissatisfaction with the board's handling of recent events affecting the company; and if so, if he will make a statement on the matter.
26 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Finance if he has yet received a report from his representative who attended the extraordinary general meeting of Greencore plc; if he intends to take any action as a result of that report; if he intends to seek the removal of the Chairman of the Board of Greencore in view of his handling of this controversy; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 5, 13, 20 and 26 together.
I would like to make the point to the Taoiseach that Question No. 13 has nothing to do with Question No. 5.
It is the prerogative of the Taoiseach to take questions in the form he thinks best. That is an established practice in this House.
On a point of order——
Deputy Rabbitte, please. You are being disorderly.
I have raised a point of order.
You have raised a point of disorder.
The subject matter of Question No. 5 has nothing to do with Question No. 13. If the Taoiseach is answering for the Minister for Finance, that is not my problem.
I have no control over the manner in which questions are taken by a Minister or Taoiseach. Resume your seat.
A Cheann Comhairle——
I shall have to ask you to leave the House if you continue this disorderly behaviour.
On a point of order may I withdraw Question No. 13 and resubmit it? It is disgraceful——
It is called now.
The Deputy has requested to withdraw Question No. 13. Under Standing Orders he is entitled to request a withdrawal.
These are priority questions on which a strict time limit applies.
The Deputy is entitled to ask for the withdrawal of Question No. 13.
The question has been called by me.
You called Question No. 5, a Cheann Comhairle.
The Taoiseach proposed, with the agreement of the Chair, to take the questions together.
I shall have a look at the matter.
What does that mean?
I shall consider your request to withdraw later.
The Taoiseach is about to reply. It is a point of importance.
The Taoiseach is about to reply to a number of questions.
It must be the first time in the annals of this House that a Deputy does not want a question answered.
Question No. 5.
To begin with, neither I nor the previous Minister for Finance have met the board of Greencore, but Deputies will be aware that my representative left the board in no doubt, at the recent EGM about my dissatisfaction with the initial handling of recent events. Deputies will also be aware that my dissatisfaction with the way the board of Irish Sugar handled some not so recent events was also expressed.
As the largest single shareholder in Greencore, I am of course concerned about events which may have an adverse impact on the company, but it is gratifying to note that despite recent events investors have maintained their confidence in the company. I want to take this opportunity to reaffirm my belief that Greencore is a sound company with further potential for development and I want to work with all other shareholders towards this goal.
You, Ceann Comhairle, and Deputies will be aware that there are ongoing investigations by court-appointed inspectors and we should not attempt to prejudge the contents of the inspectors' reports. As information becomes available the necessary decisions can be made and actions taken. Since Greencore is a public company it is important that I, as a major shareholder, act in concert with all other shareholders for the benefit of the company.
I have received the report from my representative who attended the EGM of Greencore and that report was presented to Government. The Government decided that the Minister for Finance should meet the chairman to convey certain concerns felt by Government. Deputy Reynolds met Mr. Cahill on Thursday, 7 November, and reiterated the Government's concerns regarding the severance packages offered to certain executives of Greencore, as well as the valuations of the 49 per cent of Sugar Distributors Holdings Limited at the time of the management buy out and 15 months later when it was acquired by Irish Sugar. It was agreed that there will be a further meeting with the chairman when the inspectors' reports are available.
I have also received the report of the Central Bank into certain transactions connected with the SDHL affair and this has been made available to the inspectors. The Revenue Commissioners' report is in preparation. It is the intention, in due course, that when these have been examined, together with the inspectors' reports, their findings will be made public.
(Limerick East): May I ask the Taoiseach if he is aware that the Minister for Finance's representative at the emergency general meeting of Greencore said that one of the primary interests of the Government was to establish whether the taxpayer was well served by those in authority in Irish Sugar at the time? In light of the report presented today by the inspectors appointed under the High Court and presented to the Minister for Industry and Commerce last night, may I ask the Taoiseach if the Government think that the taxpayer was well served by those in authority in the sugar company at the time?
The report to which the Deputy refers is an interim report. I understand it is the subject of legal proceedings in the court at present, so I am not in a position to comment on it. I have not yet seen the report and I understand it has been submitted to the Minister for Industry and Commerce on the strict instruction from the court that is for his information only at this stage.
(Limerick East): May I further ask the Taoiseach if he is aware that the proxy submission to the EGM also stated that the Government were dismayed at the generous severance packages to certain executives and that the board acted precipitately in arranging those packages? Can he explain how the present chairman and board are still in office on behalf of the majority shareholder, the Government, who hold those views?
The Government are not a majority shareholder.
(Limerick East): The biggest shareholder.
Yes. The Government's position is that they have already conveyed, through the Minister for Finance, to the chairman their concerns about different aspects. It is our intention to meet the chairman and perhaps the full board again as soon as the inspectors' reports are available.
(Limerick East): May I——
A brief question, Deputy Noonan. We are in priority time and I appeal for brevity.
(Limerick East): I want to ask a final supplementary. Is it the Taoiseach's intention to refrain from any action against the chairman or the other directors on the board until the full reports which have been commissioned are available, or is he prepared under certain circumstances, to act out of information in today's interim report?
I think that will have to remain to be seen. The Government's intention, as of now, is to await the complete report when all the information, hopefully in finalised form, will be available. Naturally, it is a matter we will have to keep under review.
